BRATTLEBORO, Vt., July 13, 2017 – The Holstein Association USA board of directors met June 27-28, 2017 in Bellevue, Washington. President Gordie Cook chaired the meeting held in conjunction with the 132nd Annual Meeting and Convention at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue, just outside of Seattle.
The board honored retiring President Gordie Cook of Massachusetts, and Directors Roy Buessing of Kansas and Mike Jones of Indiana. All were formally recognized during a board dinner on June 28th and at the Annual Meeting banquet on July 1st for their leadership and contributions to the Association.
Program activity
Through May 31, 2017, registrations totaled 151,417 Holsteins, up .3 percent compared to 2016. The Association processed 30,397 transfers through the end of May. This is 6 percent higher than the same time last year.
Holstein COMPLETE® enrollment through May stood at 342,077 animals. Participation is up six percent since the first of the year, representing an additional 30,397 cows.
Management reported AgriTech Analytics (ATA) enrollment stood at 956,724 cows through May. This is an increase of 6,533 when compared to the same time last year. Records processed in May reached 933,131, the highest total processed in a month since December 2015.
Committee reports
The board heard reports from the Audit, Genetic Advancement, Junior Advisory, International, Legislative Affairs, Show, and Type committees.
The board of directors approved several recommendations made by the Genetic Advancement Committee regarding the Udder Composite, Feet and Legs Composite and TPI® formula. Following is a summary of the approved recommendations, which are targeted for implementation with the August official genetic evaluation:
• The traits included in the Udder Composite and Feet and Legs Composite have been updated as well as their weighting in the respective formulas, to reflect maximum economic returns. Of note, a negative weighting on STA Stature has been added to both of those composites to lower their relationship with stature, in response to concerns from the industry.
• Several updates will be made to the TPI formula in August, including incorporating the updated composites as noted above. Other notable changes are updating the weighting of Protein, Fat and Feed Efficiency in the formula; adding the trait Cow Livability to the formula and moving some emphasis from Productive Life to Cow Livability; and updating the economic values used in Feed Efficiency to reflect those used in the Cheese Merit index.
• The name of Body Size Composite will be changed to Body Weight Composite to more accurately reflect what the index is meant to predict. No other changes are being made to that composite other than the name.
More detailed information about these changes will be forthcoming and available on the Holstein Association USA website.
Other board action
Incoming President Boyd Schaufelberger of Illinois led the reorganization meeting of the board on July 1st. The board welcomed newly-elected Vice President Corey Geiger of Wisconsin, returning Directors John Burket of Pennsylvania and Dale Drendel of Illinois, and incoming Directors Steve Moff of Ohio and Dwight Rokey of Kansas. The President and Vice President serve two-year terms and Directors serve three years.
Upcoming meeting
The fall meeting of the HAUSA board of directors will be held in Chicago, Illinois onNovember 15-16, 2017.